The newer Jeffco school board voted in January to start the search for a new superintendent, and a firm just completed public meetings to get input about what qualities they should look for in candidates. The job is being advertised with a base salary of $300,000.

When the board voted to launch the search for a new superintendent, board members said they didn’t have specific problems or concerns with McMinimee’s performance but wanted to see if they might find a person who could be better for the job.

According to McMinimee’s contract, if he is released before his contract expires at the end of June, he is to receive a year’s worth of his base salary, which is $220,000. If McMinimee chose to break the contract to leave on his own, the district could charge him for damages.

The school board held a closed session Feb. 16 to seek legal advice about the superintendent’s contract, according to the district. No details of that meeting were made public.

It’s not immediately clear what agreement the board reached with McMinimee. The district’s announcement said the board will vote on a new agreement at their March 9 board meeting. The agreement is not to be released before it is signed and finalized, according to McMinimee and Mitchell.

Photo by Eric Gorski, Chalkbeat. Jeffco Superintendent Dan McMinimee speaking to reporters in January 2017. This story was originally posted on Chalkbeat by Yesenia Robles on March 2, 2017. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.